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The sea-battle of
Strindfjorden
One of the most significant naval battles of King Sverre‘s time took place on the fjord outside Lade. It was towards the end of his life, but he had reigned long. He was hailed as king in 1177.
At the beginning of his reign, the battle against King Magnus Erlingsson and his father, Erling Skakke, marked the king’s time. The old town of Trondhjem was one of the country’s most important centers of power. The old region Strindfylket included the area around Nidaros town, stretched across the fjord and included Leksvik. The fjord between Strinda and Leksvik was called Strindfjorden, and the sagas refer specifically to the battle on Strindfjorden. The warring parties were the Birkebeiners and the Baglers.
Or if we mention the leaders on each side: King Sverre against Oslo Bishop Nikolaus Arnesson. After King Sverre had defeated Erling Skakke in 1179 and then his son King Magnus Erlingsson in 1184, it was relatively peaceful in the kingdom for many years. In 1196, Bishop Nikolaus challenged Sverre. Family background was important at this time. Nikolaus had the right background to challenge the proscribed king in Norway. He was the half-brother of King Inge Krokrygg (Inge hunched back), and Sverre’s queen, the Swedish king’s daughter Margrethe, was the third son of Nikolaus, daughter of Erik the Holy.
In order to understand the political constellations in Norway at this time, it is necessary to examine the large context.
The struggle for power in the Norwegian Empire (Norgesveldet) must be seen both in the light of national and international conditions. It is easier to understand the national lines. In 1153, the Norwegian church province was founded as one of the largest in northern Europe in terms of extent.
After being subject to the archbishop of Bremen and later the archbishop of Lund in Scania, the new archdiocese of Nidaros, in addition to the Norwegian mainland, was also responsible for Iceland, Greenland and the islands in the North Sea, such as the Faroe Islands, the Orkney Islands, Shetland and the Southern Isles of Man. For several generations, Norway had experienced rivalry between various royal sons. When the archbishopric was established, there were three kings: Harald’s sons Inge Krokrygg, Sigurd Munn and Øystein. In reality, there was civil war in the country, despite periodic cooperation.
In line with the old inheritance law, all royal sons claimed that they could claim the royal name on the throne. The church wanted to end this. It wanted the eldest legitimate son to become the next king, to ensure an organized and predictable transfer of kingship. Erling Jarl’s son Magnus was crowned Norwegian king. He was chosen as king by Inge Krokrygg already as a five-year-old. He was born in wedlock, but the problem was that his father was not king. In contrast, his mother was the daughter of a king. To correct this deficiency, King Magnus was crowned king in Bergen by Archbishop Øystein in 1163. Thus the church became a strong supporter of King Magnus. Against all odds, the king’s son Sverre from the Faroe Islands, the illegitimate son of King Sigurd, won the battle against King Magnus after many years of conflicts and power struggles.
Piece of the Strindfjord taken from Leksvik towards Tautra. Photo: Bjørn Lien.
Internationally, we found ourselves in the middle of the struggle between the emperor and the pope for influence on worldly development. The Pope, who considered himself God’s representative on earth, claimed principled supremacy over worldly rulers. This struggle was also reflected nationally, where the archbishop wanted a certain supremacy over the king.
King Sverre, who was trained as a priest, was well aware of the conflict that was going on in Europe. He knew, for example, that the theologians at the University of Bologna opposed the supremacy of the Pope, which is evident from Sverre’s speech against the bishops. The Pope got involved with Sverre and excommunicated him several times. Thus the Norwegian church stood against King Sverre. Although Archbishop Øystein reconciled with Sverre, the Pope continued the fight.
After Earl Erling and later King Magnus had been defeated, the Pope did not forget King Sverre, who had been excommunicated. This is the reason why the Oslo bishop, who had himself been approved as a Norwegian bishop by King Sverre, started the fight against him in 1196. He received support from King Magnus’ former followers. Several of the country’s leading families supported the Baglers. The battle between the king’s men, the Birkebeiners, and the new bishop party, the Baglers, raged during the last six years of Sverre’s reign.
The Battle of Strindfjorden took place on Friday 18 June 1199. The Baglers sailed north from Bergen with a large fleet to conquer Nidaros. When they learned that Sverre was in town, they gave up and went north to Hålogaland to get support from Bjarkøy. They got the support they were looking for. In late winter, Sverre in Nidaros had built eight large ships with high sides, ready for Easter.
At the beginning of June, the bagler fleet returned to Trondhjemsfjorden and anchored at Munkholmen. The city was well fortified, and the bagels sailed into the fjord to collect supplies. On the morning of June 18, the Birkebeiner fleet left the city and sailed inland. The battle at Tautra began at noon and raged for six hours. King Sverre led the battle from his ship, called “Hugro,” which means peace of mind. He was a brave man who did not spare himself. Throughout the battle he used a crossbow. Not least, he gave speeches to his men when there was an occasion.
His speeches were inspiring. Professor Fredrik Paasche says in his book about King Sverre: “The king’s leadership now, as usual, bore a good part of the credit for the victory.” At night, King Sverre and his men could row into the city after clearing six of the Baglers’ ships. Hallvard of Saastad from Stange, one of the Baglers’ most capable chiefs, was among the fallen.
Illustration from 1902 about the Battle of Stringfjorden.
Bishop Nikolas was not known as a brave man. He was strategic, and his ships stayed on the edge of the battle. When he saw how things were developing, he chose to flee beyond the fjord together with close allies such as Reidar Sendemann and Håkon Jarlssønn. Despite encouraging his men as well, he kept his distance from the actual battle.
Fredrik Paasche, a Norwegian pedagogue, author, and literary historian, refers to a speech that Bishop Nikolas allegedly gave to his army before the battle: “Sverre the priest now has no more of Norway than a promontory, and it would be appropriate if he ruled over it from the gallows where he was hanged. I don’t think we baggers should care much about where he goes with his ships, which he has riveted together here in town.” The irony didn’t help, though. Sverre remained king until he died a natural death in 1202 in Bergen.
Viking laws
1 BE BRAVE AND AGGRESSIVE
BE DIRECT.
GRAB ALL OPPORTUNITIES.
USE VARYING METHODS OF ATTACK.
BE VERSATILE AND AGILE.
ATTACK ONE TARGET AT A TIME .
DO NOT PLAN EVERYTHING IN DETAIL.
USE TOP OUALITY WEAPONS.
2 BE PREPARED
KEEP WEAPONS IN GOOD CONDITION.
KEEP IN SHAPE.
FIND GOOD BATTLE COMRADES.
AGREE ON IMPORTANT POINTS.
CHOOSE ONE CHIEF.
3 BE A GOOD MERCHANT
FIND OUT WHAT THE MARKET NEEDS.
DO NOT PROMISE WHAT YOU CANNOT KEEP.
DO NOT DEMAND OVERPAYMENT.
ARRANGE THINGS SO THAT YOU CAN RETURN.
4 KEEP THE CAMP IN ORDER
KEEP THINGS TIDY AND ORGANIZED.
ARRANGE ENJOYABLE ACTIVITIES WHICH STRENGHTEN THE GROUP.
MAKE SURE EVERYBODY DOES USEFUL WORK.
CONSULT ALL MEMBERS OF THE GROUP FOR ADVICE.
